Forever Partners
by tarz
Summary: After first game. Rikimaru lives and has feelings for Ayame but the two must sort out their problems first.
1. Surprises in the Dark

Surprises In The Dark  
  
Ayame waded in the cool water, slowly falling asleep. She woke herself up again by diving into the water and emerging under the waterfall. After washing her hair and her body she swam to the bank and wrapped a large piece of cloth around her naked body. Her muscles ached so bad and her head felt heavy. All she wanted to do was retire to her room and sleep for a very, very long time, but she knew she wouldn't. Slowly she limped back to the village and was joined halfway by Kiku.  
  
"How are you feeling Ayame?"  
  
"Tired Princess. Please forgive me, I cannot play today."  
  
"That's okay. I'm going to see Rikimaru anyway and I'll tell you how he is after I see him." With a large smile Kiku ran to the village that loomed up in the distance.  
  
Once Ayame had gotten dressed her loyalty took over her tired body and she went searching for Lord Gorda. He was resting against a tree staring at the river in front of him. He was enjoying his holiday at the ninja village. He needed it, after the ordeal he had just been through.  
  
"Master." Ayame knelt down in front of him and lowered her head in respect.  
  
"Ah Ayame. I am forever in your debt for saving my daughter." His smile warmed her heart and she forgot about her aches and pains for a moment.  
  
"Thankyou master but there is something I wish to ask you, if its not to much trouble."  
  
"Anything. Anything you wish for is yours Ayame"  
  
"Well if I am not needed on any missions may I have a holiday. Not for long just maybe a few days or even a..." she was cut off by his laughter. His laugh wasn't very deep but it shook his whole body and made her feel like laughing too.  
  
"Is that all my dear. I was going to find you later and discuss it. I want you to rest up. I need you and Rikimaru to be back to health as soon as possible and it isn't going to happen if you don't rest. Right?"  
  
"Yes master. May I go and rest now?" She stood up slowly. He nodded and watched as Ayame slowly walked back to her room.  
  
No matter how hard she tried Ayame couldn't get to sleep. Her body ached for it but her mind refused to give way. She kept reliving the events over and over again. Finally when she thought she would never sleep Kiku knocked on her door and walked in. She handed Ayame a small bowl full of a green liquid. Ayame new it would help her sleep but the taste was revolting. Kiku laughed as Ayame forced the drink down her throat.  
  
"Well?" Ayame laid back down again and listened to Kiku's response.  
  
"Well.he's looking great. He is asleep right now, as you should be. He wasn't as bad as we thought but don't worry I'm watching over him and you too Ayame." Her face filled with pride but became slightly fuzzy. Ayame could feel the drugs taking over as she closed her eyes and faintly heard her princess leave.  
  
Ayame was woken that night by the sounds of light footsteps on her roof. Quietly she stood and found her swords. The footsteps had made their way to the middle of the roof and stopped. 'Thats odd. its either Kiku or another ninja' Ayame thought. She made her way outside her house and looked for a way to climb onto the roof. There were many houses set up in the village, most were just decoys but some housed sick ninja, or even Lord Gorda himself. Ayame was still to weak to just jump up there so she used a nearby barrel to help her. Fortunately the moon was shinning towards her so she could see the boy sitting on the tip of the roof. He turned towards Ayame, who was crouching in the far right corner.  
  
"Don't be stupid girl!" The boy turned back towards the moon and sighed.  
  
"Rikimaru? What are you doing here?" 


	2. The Loss Of A Partner

A/N: umm yeah sorry if anything in this doesn't make sense :S disclaimer: I don't own anything!!!! Yeah thats right! Nothing!!!  
The Loss Of A Partner  
  
Ayame sat down next to her partner. She placed her swords next to her carefully slowly glancing around in case people could see.  
  
"No one can see us here Ayame. No one is awake." His voice wasn't the same. It seemed empty, no feeling.  
  
"Riki are you ok?" Ayame placed her hand on his. Quickly, as if her hand was ice, he pulled away  
  
"DON'T touch me!" Ayame was shocked. Rikimaru buried his face in his hands.  
  
"Riki I...."  
  
"You don't know what it was like. How could you? What if you were in my position and I did the same to you huh?"  
  
"Riki I know..."  
  
"No you don't. You know nothing!" He stood up and faced her. He stood at an angle where his face was covered in shadow but Ayame's face was in bright moonlight. He could see small tears falling from her eyes. He hated yelling at her. He knew she didn't mean it.  
  
"Please Riki, let me explain. It was the blood Riki..."  
  
"AYAME YOUR A NINJA." He screamed at her. The animals that were lingering around the river scattered and the night was once again quiet. "You are trained to kill, to see blood. Sometimes your life depends on seeing it, feeling the blood of your victims dripping off your fingers, to feel our Lords enemies dying at your hands. Don't tell me it was the blood."  
  
"I know. But it was your blood, not an enemies, yours. You remember how I panicked when Kiku fell over and scratched her knee. Even the sight of her blood made me sick. I'm so sorry Riki please forgive me!"  
  
"You are meant to be my partner Ayame. What happened to you?"  
  
"I....I just froze. Seeing you reach out I couldn't.I just couldn't." She burst into tears remembering the events.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~ flashback ~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ayame dropped princess Kiku on the ground and looked back at the cave entrance. The dust was still floating in the air from the falling rocks. Rikimaru was no where to be found. Kiku was kneeling on the ground screaming her heart out for the boy ninja. Ayame was sobbing as her eyes searched madly through the dust cloud. Slowly, as the dust settled, a figure slithered toward the girls. It was Rikimaru. Somehow he had made it but he had paid for it. His body was covered in cuts and soaked with his blood. Once he knew Ayame could see him he reached out for her.  
  
Kiku screamed once again. That was all she could do. Ayame froze in horror as her partner reach out to her with a blood covered hand, asking for her help. She began to shake her head, trying to shake away the image. Rikimaru began to sob and slide toward Kiku. The princess ran to Ayame and the girls watched as Rikimaru's arm fell to the ground and his body became lifeless.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~ end flashback ~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Ayame. You are meant to be my partner but you let me down. Tomorrow I will go to Lord Gorda and ask for a new partner. I can not trust you to help me when I need you to. Good night" he turned from her and quickly wiped away his own tears. He had been through so much with her. She was everything to him, his sister, his best friend, his life.  
  
"Riki please...I'm sorry! What else can I do?"  
  
"Nothing." He slowly jumped off the roof, whispering a profanity when he landed and hobbled back to his house. Ayame watched him until he was out of sight and cried to the moon. 


	3. The Cloth

The Cloth  
  
Ayame hadn't seen Rikimaru since their rooftop encounter. He had stayed in his room for the last few days sleeping and recovering. Ayame knew he was okay. He was able to get onto the roof and all, but he was being his usual self and dragging it out as long as possible. Ayame on the other hand was fully recovered and was in the training area throwing knives at small wooden targets. Lord Gorda had been to see Rikimaru a few times but he had never said anything about a new partner. Ayame was hoping that Rikimaru's statement was only a threat to make her fell even worse, which it did.  
  
Once Ayame had finished with her practice she returned the knives back to the equipment room and sat down by the river, soaking up the last of the warm sun. Lord Gorda came over, sat beside her and ran his fingers through the water.  
  
"I have been talking to Rikimaru."  
  
"Yes master."  
  
"Do you know what we have been talking about?"  
  
"No." Gorda sighed. He needed his best ninjas to work together not apart. He didn't want to do it, but he had to.  
  
"Rikimaru wants a new partner. Tomorrow morning we will gather all of the newly trained ninjas and you both have to choose a new partner. It will benefit both you and Rikimaru and you can pass your talents onto the next generation so to speak."  
  
"I understand." Ayame felt tears spring to her eyes. It wasn't a threat. It was for real. It was over. "I thought he would forgive me. So I stuffed up. He's okay isn't he? This isn't fair!"  
  
"Life isn't fair Ayame. Give Rikimaru time and I'm sure he will come around soon." Lord Gorda placed a small leaf boat that he had made during their talk into the river and both of them watched as it floated downstream. He quietly stood, reminded Ayame of the partner picking the following morning and left. Ayame reached inside her pocket and pulled out a piece of blood covered cloth. It was all that was left from Rikimaru's clothes from the other day. The ninja's burnt the rest of it but Ayame took some as a reminder of her mistake.  
  
She ran to Rikimaru's room not bothering to announce her entrance. He was lying there staring at the ceiling.  
  
"I know it was a mistake. I have this to remind me!" She threw the cloth at Rikimaru's face. He sat up and studied it.  
  
"Why did you keep this?"  
  
"So I could relive my mistake until you got better. Until you forgave me. That day will not come so now I have no choice but to give it to you. Maybe it will give you bad dreams now!" Ayame was shaking. She couldn't stop the words from coming out her mouth. They were being blurted out without her brains knowledge. "And another thing, with this partner thing tomorrow, I think I deserve to get first choice!"  
  
"I can't believe you kept it..." Rikimaru's eyes had not left the cloth.  
  
"You are impossible." Ayame left in a similar way to how she had entered. 'I forgive you' Rikimaru thought as he watched the door she had just walked through, then placed the cloth under his pillow. She had grown up with him in the village. There had been many a night where they had snuck out after curfew and ran with each other through the bamboo forest just to feel the adrenaline pumping through their veins. They promised they would always be partners. Rikimaru couldn't be partners with her anymore. They weren't just friends, they were to close. It was getting to personal and the last mission had proved it to him. His thoughts were only on Ayame not the mission. He couldn't afford to be like that. He need to concentrate.  
  
That night he had a nightmare. It was the events that had occurred the other day. This time he was seeing it through Ayame's point of view, feeling what she felt, hearing her thoughts. He woke covered in sweat and was panting.  
  
"The cloth." He reached under his pillow and removed it. He slowly made his was outside and threw the cloth into a torch that was beside his front door. He watched it burn into nothing.  
  
'I can't believe it' He thought as he watched the sun climb into the sky from his roof. He had felt everything she had. The feeling was still there even as he sat perfectly still. She couldn't have helped him, not if she felt like this.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
As the sun woke up the rest of the village the mysterious ninja leapt down from it's viewing place high in a tree and ran back through the forest. This ninja had been watching the village for the last few days, and knew the routine of its next kill quite well. Now it just needed the right time.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Today was the big day. Ayame's body refused to wake up and she groaned to herself. "Rikimaru can't be doing this to me" she mumbled curling herself up into a ball. She wanted to go back to sleep then wake up again with everything being how it should be. She wanted Rikimaru to be her partner... Ayame froze for a second. Maybe she didn't want him to be her partner, after all he was always telling her how to kill people and when to do it. She was quite capable of doing these things on her own.  
  
"Maybe I should train a little me, it could be interesting!" Her new found excitement gave her the energy to fight her body and get up. "A little Ayame following me around. I can't wait. I hope Rikimaru's new partner hates him, that would be so great!" Ayame even found herself skipping up to the main ninja house so eager to get her new partner.  
  
When she entered the house Lord Gorda and Rikimaru were sitting at one end of the room while seven young ninjas sat in front of them with there heads down. As soon as she entered her eyes connected with Rikimaru's. Her heart skipped a beat. She didn't know why but she couldn't stop looking at him. She wanted to run up to him and give him a big hug but she knew she couldn't. This day was going to be very hard for her. 


	4. Friend or Foe

A/N: I am so sorry I haven't updated in ages. I feel really really really bad. I hope you guys can forgive me.... Thank you to everyone who reviewed! If it wasn't for you I would have never got back to it. I know its not much up I will update again soon!  
  
After Lord Gorda had said his speech, one which neither Rikimaru and Ayame were listening to, it was time to choose a new partner.  
  
"Rikimaru" Lord Gorda gestured towards the young ninjas but Rikimaru shook his head  
  
"Ayame has the first choice my Lord" He bowed his head towards Ayame who took a deep breath and walked closer to the young ninjas.  
  
Most of the young ones were male but there were a few females there, one in particular caught Ayame's eye. She was small but she had muscles and looked extremely fit. She hung her head lower than the others in a greater sign of respect. Ayame liked this. Not only will Ayame have a follower but she might even have a little servant. "You" Ayame pointed at the girl.  
  
Lord Gorda walked forward and spoke to the girl. "Chima please rise and meet your new partner."  
  
The girl rose and slowly lifted her eyes. Chima was a beautiful girl with crystal blue eyes and a long flowing pigtail of black hair. "Thankyou for choosing me. I will not fail you." Guilt filled Ayame as she glanced over at Rikimaru. He looked back at her but quickly turned towards a young male ninja that had caught his eye. "Hisato meet your new partner Rikimaru." Lord Gorda now ordered the rest of the ninja's to leave so that only Rikimaru, Ayame and their partners were there.  
  
"Now Chima and Hisato remember you have been trained in the ways of the ninja, but, you have not yet experienced it. Rikimaru and Ayame are not only your partners but your mentors. Learn from them and always trust. Follow their instructions and I'm sure you will do fine. Now you will have a few days to learn about each other then I have a task for each of you. Now go."  
  
The four ninja's bowed and left the building. Ayame took Chima's hand and ran towards the waterfall just outside the village. Rikimaru rolled his eyes as he watched the poor young girl being dragged off. He took Hisato down to the river. It was a nice spot where they could talk and learn about each other.  
  
At the waterfall Ayame had managed to drag Chima into the water to cool off their feet. "So Chima, is that your name or your ninja name?" "It does not matter. Whatever you choose to call me mentor will be fine." Ayame was stunned. Chima had her head down and watched the small fish that were taking little bites from her toes. "I wonder where these fish came from."  
  
"Who cares this place is so cool. So what do you use? Sword?"  
  
"Yes"  
  
"Have you killed anyone before?"  
  
"Yes"  
  
"So you like blood?"  
  
"I guess so. I know I would not let your blood stop me." Chima glanced up at a stunned Ayame. "Everyone knows what happened and why you have a new partner."  
  
"Gee I don't really know what to say to you Chima I really can't..."  
  
"Don't say anything then. Just know that I will not fail you. My weapon is the sword. I have mastered the art of stealth kills and my trade mark is decapitation. I will listen to what you say and I will follow your instructions but as for us being friends we will have to wait and see. I am going to practice now. If you wish to watch me, you can." With that Chima left Ayame and made her way back to the village.  
  
Ayame began to sob as she played with a small flower that was growing near the waters edge. The whole village knew now. The only person that understood her was Kiku, and only because she was there. Rikimaru didn't, Chima didn't. She threw the flower into the river and watched it float downstream taking her tears with it.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Near the old tree Rikimaru and Hisato sat next to the river. Since they had arrived Hisato had not been quiet. Thousands of questions and even more statements were beginning to annoy Rikimaru. "Wow I wish I could use a sword like you do...." "Ayame really stuffed up didn't she? The whole village is talking about her......."  
  
"Where did you get that scar from? I guess you have a lot of scars..."  
  
"On our first mission together can I kill the first guy?...." "Can I call you Riki? Or would you rather Rikimaru?....." "You're MY partner now.."  
  
"I have the best partner in the whole village..." "Where did that flower come from?"  
  
For the first time since they had got to the river Rikimaru took his eyes off the grass and looked at the flower. He knew where it had come from. The waterfall, from Ayame. "Hisato. You can call me Riki if you want. Stop talking about Ayame, more happened than people realise. That flower came from her."  
  
"Pfft how do you know? Its just a flower! It might have fallen off a tree or something!"  
  
Rikimaru sighed "That flower is from a plant Hisato and I know it came from Ayame because she went up to the waterfall where this flower came from. She has always played with those flower..............always."  
  
Hisato realised that Rikimaru needed some time alone so he told him he was going to practice for their first mission. Rikimaru nodded and let his young partner go, thankful for the peace and quiet.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
In the practice room, which was just the same as the other buildings on the outside but had no walls on the inside, Chima was warming up and getting the feel of her sword. Once she began to practice her moves were more fluid and never did she falter.  
  
"Your good Chima." Hisato walk into the building and picked up his sword. "To bad I'm still going to beat you!"  
  
Chima laughed and the two began to duel. They were using their swords which was not aloud. When dueling only the wooden swords were meant to be used but even Chima had forgotten. The thrill of getting real ninja partners and then the opportunity to have a real duel was too much for them. After a few rounds they collapsed on the floor covered in sweat. "I have every right to tell Lord Gorda about this!" Ayame stepped into the building. She had been watching them for most of the time.  
  
"We should." Rikimaru stepped in through the other entrance at the end of the building. "You are good Hisato but there are a few things I wish to teach you." Chima looked at Rikimaru with such respect that Ayame felt her blood boil.  
  
"We were just having fun Riki, really we were!" Hisato began to panic. "We will never do it again... never!" Chima's eyes scanned her mentor. She knew Ayame would never tell. That was her weak point and Chima planned to exploit it.  
  
"Come now. Let us go and eat, then we shall start training." Rikimaru nodded his head for Ayame and Chima to join them, which pleased both the girls. 


	5. AN

OK 1: I know that they are ninjas. I know that they are different in the games, but this is my fic and this is how I want it to go 2: I know you can all tell whats going to happen, I don't mind, I guess mine can join the many others that have written predictable fics 3: If you don't like it, don't bother reading it and please don't review like "The Evil One" did. I'm doing this for fun but if I get anymore like that I'll just get rid of it.  
  
I'm writing this story whenever I can and I didn't get a chance to get anyone to proof read the last chapter. I'm sorry if it was bad or you couldn't understand it. I'll try to get someone to check the next chapter over.  
  
Thank you  
  
Tarz 


End file.
